Covea Finance Has $26.09 Million Stock Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Covea Finance increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 18.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 121,400 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,200 shares during the period. Cheniere Energy makes up about 1.2% of Covea Finance’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Covea Finance’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $26,085,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,438,428 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $978,047,000 after buying an additional 167,575 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 195.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,200,456 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $755,410,000 after acquiring an additional 2,776,920 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 91.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,747,370 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $673,927,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,919 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 7.4% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,921,837 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $510,825,000 after purchasing an additional 202,097 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.1% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,060,622 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $360,259,000 after purchasing an additional 99,678 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on LNG shares. TD Cowen raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $201.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $204.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.55.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LNG opened at $243.03 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $216.82 and a 200 day moving average of $194.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The stock has a market cap of $54.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.52 and a beta of 0.99. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $152.31 and a 12 month high of $243.42.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $2.06. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 41.44% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.37 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 12.77%.

About Cheniere Energy

Cheniere Energy, Inc, an energy infrastructure company, primarily engages in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) related businesses in the United States. It owns and operates the Sabine Pass LNG terminal in Cameron Parish, Louisiana; and the Corpus Christi LNG terminal near Corpus Christi, Texas. The company also owns Creole Trail pipeline, a 94-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal with several interstate and intrastate pipelines; and operates Corpus Christi pipeline, a 21.5-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Corpus Christi LNG terminal with various interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines.